[Blogger Foreword: Like many blog posts, this one is not a court reporter's transcript. It is close enough, and if anyone wants it absolutely verbatim, there is a video recording on the township website.]
After John Festa's performance, Vic brought up something about correspondence relating apparently to a lawsuit. Since I had none of that and therefore it made little sense to me, although it did to the trustees and fiscal officer, I am going to skip it.
John Festa to Mary Ann Weber (about the house at the bull pen): Are you pursuing anything else on your surveys?
Mary Ann: Your blogger lost that answer because my mind shifted momentarily to something else.
John Festa clarified that there would be something about this in two weeks.
Mary Ann: The previous survey was done in the 70's and no one accepts those. The new survey will be $600-$750. Extra research is necessary to see how the property line got to be where it is.
Jason recommended talking with Beth Pierson (sp?) and Mary Ann said she had spoken with Beth's husband.
Public Comment began at 8:50.
Sue Skrovan and Amy Janca had nothing more.
Nick Ehlert said he had already covered everything on his mind.
Linda Ehlert, Mantua Center Road: I wanted to say that I agree with a lot f things Nick said earlier. There are hundreds of trucks coming down this road. A lot of people fly down Diagonal Road. I am concerned about anything that will draw more people. The ball field or Mantua Center School would be better. I can see our doing the landscaping there. [Blogger: Not sure whether the reference is to the bull pen or the school. The Mantua Center School community center is moving forward and a park would be better there. There is more privacy and [it is] safer.
Vic, to Linda: Do you want to touch on Dana Heffner?
Linda: I am on the funding committee and we were able to get another $1500 from Dana Heffner (First Energy). If you could put her on the agenda at the next meeting, because she is coming from Akron. I hope we can show her the school also and I hope we can talk her into providing more money if we can get her excited about the school.
Jason: I met Dana at a few things. She is a member of the Portage County Township Association.
Bill Kelley, School Lane: This is School Lane Part 2. You will see why I brought up the issues earlier. Having lived where we do, I have been able to witness every election since then. I want to make comments on traffic flow and maybe easing parking. If we maintain a north-south flow on School Lane, rather than one way, which causes confusion. This is why I brought up the 40 foot width. My suggestion is, no parking on School Lane North so they can get into the school with the south lane being an exit. The rest of the property south may be partly owned by the township. We have a 16' road and 40' road. [Put] signage at both sides of the road and there can be more parking south of the cyclone fence and parking on the grass can be allowed the way it is for the county fair, for example.
We have at least 20 parking spaces. You would not be that close to the stop sign on the south end. Someone headed north, they just have to pull into the space. You can also advertise a month ahead of election time--I think we can facilitate the traffic flow and parking. What I saw today when I did the measurements, if we actually own more than you can see we can add more parking. If that property belongs to the community, we can get as many as 24-26 cars. The election is coming and it will be busy.
Jason: The Board of Elections runs the whole thing. We can put up some signage and work with them, but they take most of the control.
Vic: If you don't mind, Bill,one of our residents works at the Board of Elections. You could show her.
Bill: I am terribly concerned after watching what has occurred.
Amy Janca undertook to explain to Bill how the elections work, she having been a poll worker.
I was next in public comment. At this point, I have listened to the recording of my remarks and have taken the best notes I intend to take of them--not a transcript, but I believe accurate as to spirit and content. I may have spoken for as many as 8 minutes. It took a half hour of feverish writing, stopping, backing up, and writing again to take the notes that I will transcribe--and they are not every word. There is enough to warrant its own post, and there were a couple of speakers after that. They went into some detail also, and I consider it valuable. This is once when finishing the previous meeting may not occur until after the next one, oh joy. I am no longer willing to spend most of every day for a number of days on this blog and have tried to do it in reasonable chunks. There's a saying that four inches is close enough for road work. And, in my opinion, for the blog. Stay tuned.
About This Blog
The purpose of this blog is to give an accurate account of what is said during Public Comment at Mantua Township Trustees meetings.
Trustees' decisions are in the official minutes, available on request from the Mantua Township Fiscal Officer, Jodi Thompson, at 330-274-8443. The Township charges 10 cents per page. FAX, 330-274-8447. E-mail, fiscalofficer@mantuatownshipohio.gov. The minutes are also posted on the website after they have been approved. That means that there is usually a two-week lag between a given meeting and the minutes being available to read on the website.
Since meetings are the first and third Thursdays of the month, there is a three-week wait during months with five Thursdays.
Other items of interest or the writer's opinions will be included from time to time, clearly identified.
This is not a forum or chat room, but a source of information, so it is closed to outside input.
During the time I have been doing the blog, the posts have expanded to become very detailed accounts of the meetings. Doing that is time consuming, to say the least, and I am going to try to return to the public comment focus, with background and perspective (and the occasional pointed editorial comment). Such additions are usually enclosed in brackets. However, since some extended accounts of the meetings reveal significant things--and character--better than I could by commenting, there will probably still be a fair amount of semi-transcript. (Sigh.)
My thanks to the readers who have found the blog, and to the ones who from time to time tell me that they value it. You have encouraged me when the tedious work of keyboarding has made me wonder why I am doing this. Then you have reminded me, and I am grateful.
Trustees' decisions are in the official minutes, available on request from the Mantua Township Fiscal Officer, Jodi Thompson, at 330-274-8443. The Township charges 10 cents per page. FAX, 330-274-8447. E-mail, fiscalofficer@mantuatownshipohio.gov. The minutes are also posted on the website after they have been approved. That means that there is usually a two-week lag between a given meeting and the minutes being available to read on the website.
Since meetings are the first and third Thursdays of the month, there is a three-week wait during months with five Thursdays.
Other items of interest or the writer's opinions will be included from time to time, clearly identified.
This is not a forum or chat room, but a source of information, so it is closed to outside input.
During the time I have been doing the blog, the posts have expanded to become very detailed accounts of the meetings. Doing that is time consuming, to say the least, and I am going to try to return to the public comment focus, with background and perspective (and the occasional pointed editorial comment). Such additions are usually enclosed in brackets. However, since some extended accounts of the meetings reveal significant things--and character--better than I could by commenting, there will probably still be a fair amount of semi-transcript. (Sigh.)
My thanks to the readers who have found the blog, and to the ones who from time to time tell me that they value it. You have encouraged me when the tedious work of keyboarding has made me wonder why I am doing this. Then you have reminded me, and I am grateful.
Principles
Two ideas guide and support me:
The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.
______Attributed to Edmund Burke
GOOD PREVAILS.
Those ideas are also the reason I have been doing the blog since late February 2011.
I have discovered that a transcript is almost impossible to do and that verbatim accounts are usually not absolutely necessary. When in doubt, I check against a recording.
The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.
______Attributed to Edmund Burke
GOOD PREVAILS.
Those ideas are also the reason I have been doing the blog since late February 2011.
I have discovered that a transcript is almost impossible to do and that verbatim accounts are usually not absolutely necessary. When in doubt, I check against a recording.
